"Live each day as if Christ is coming tomorrow, or "You don't know when He is coming, it could be the very next moment, so prepare yourselves daily"

The Two Witnesses (Rev 11)

Who are the two witnesses of Rev 11? Some say Elijah, some Moses, some John the Baptist, some Enoch. What does this all mean?

Those that say Elijah and Moses base it on their being associated with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matt 17:1-3) and that both had "uncompleted" ministries.

Those that say Elijah and John the Baptist base it on that they precede Jesus (John had the spirit of Elijah) (Matt 17:10-13)

Those that say Elijah and Enoch base it on that both of them did not see death.

As you can see, it is highly subjective.

My personal belief is that the two witnesses are representative of Christians with the spirit of Elijah and the spirit of Elisha, rather than two individuals, just as the 144,000 of Rev 7 are representative of the Church (including redeemed Israel).

Elijah always precedes Elisha. Elijah is the prophet of judgement, while Elisha is the prophet of salvation. So it is with the end times, the world must first know of God's impending judgment before it can respond to God's salvation. Also, the signs and power accompanying these witnesses (Rev 11:5-6) are similar to that of the ministries of Elijah and Elisha.

In Rev 11, the two witnesses are described as the two olive trees and two lampstands that stand before the Lord. This corresponds to that described in Zech 4. The two olive trees stand for the kingly and the priestly functions, the lampstands stand for the Church, with the Holy Spirit symbolized by the oil and fire in the lampstand. True Christians fulfil the criteria of the kingly and priestly functions in Christ (1 Pet 2:9).

Now where does this all fit into the end times?

Basically, it means the division of Christians into those who are totally committed and prepared (Rev 12:11), and the unprepared (Matt 25:11) who will be saved only by the skin of their teeth (1 Cor 3:15, Job 19:20). Here it is referring to state of preparedness, not between sheep and goats (Matt 25).

I believe that in the last days, Christians who are prepared will be empowered by the Holy Spirit and given the spirit of Elijah and Elisha, just like the five wise virgins (Matt 25) who brought extra oil (baptism and anointing of the Holy Spirit) and the servants who made full use of the talents given them (Matt 25). This empowerment is given to enable the Church to proclaim God's Word in the midst of terrible trials and persecution. Just as Elijah ministered during the persecution of God's people by Jezebel (1 Kgs 17-22), so will these Christians minister during the Great Tribulation by the Man of Sin. In 1 Kings 19:18, God tells Elijah that He had preserved 7,000 who were faithful to Him. I think that the 7,000 are a type of those whom God will preserve during the reign of the Beast, and that God's purpose is to show the triumph of the Church amidst all the persecution, and that despite all the tribulations and persecutions, the Gospel is still spread (Matt 24:14) and at the end of it all, the Church is still there, stronger than ever (eg. Tommy Hicks' vision on July 25, 1961)(The Church in China is a good model for this).

Now, what happens to the prepared and unprepared Christians during the Great Tribulation? We can equate the situation to that of the 5 wise and 5 foolish virgins of Matt 25. Note that they are all virgins, indicating that they are all Christians; not, as some say, Christians and pagans (the Bible never describes pagans as virgins). The difference is described in Ezekiel 44. Here the Church is described in terms of the Temple and the priests. The faithful and committed, the prepared, are described as the sons of Zadok, who are allowed to enter the sanctuary and minister before the Lord. The unprepared, who are not totally committed to God (going after the idols of ambition, wealth, position, etc) are still allowed in the temple, but they are restricted to the outer court. In Eze 40-42 and Rev 11, there is the measurement of the temple. Measurement of the inner court is a symbol meaning the Church measures up to a certain standard. However, the outer court is unmeasured and is trampled upon by the Gentiles (Rev 11:1-2). Now who are in the outer court? The unprepared Christians. This trampling can be seen as the "outer darkness" of Matt 25:30. If you are unprepared, God will make you prepared through this. 1 am not saying that the prepared Christians will not be persecuted, for those that serve in the inner court can also minister in the outer court (but not vice versa). God's purpose is to purify and prepare the Church to be the perfect bride of Christ. Those that are prepared will be better able to "handle" this purification process, while the unprepared will have a harder time (1 Cor 3:15)

So what is the aim of all this? It simply means that we have to enter the Holy of Holies, into the presence of God, by the Blood of the Lamb (Heb 4:16), to enter into the Rest of God (Heb 4:11). It is time to stop worshipping from afar, but to enter into His very presence. This is where the rest and anointing is, in the Holy of Holies. In the outer court there is plenty of noise but little power, but in the inner court there is peace and anointing. Most of the time we tend to be contented to worship from the outer court. But to enter into the inner court requires total commitment to God, like the sons of Zadok. We must learn to seek God's rest, and to work from His rest.

Resting in the Lord, and working from the Lord's rest requires that we understand what Christ has done for us on the Cross. it means declaring His covenantal promises, proclaiming His victory, and working from the position of victory. That is, we do not have to work in the flesh to "ensure" victory or success, because it is already promised. And when we are prepared to be overcomers (Rev 12:11), I believe we will be empowered by the Holy Spirit with the spirit of Elijah and Elisha to proclaim the Gospel with power in the midst of tribulation. Hallelujah!